Quake, Destroyer of Worlds
by silverliningineachcloud
Summary: "Behold, Quake, Destroyer of Worlds!" The team was too late; Daisy is sold to the brother of Kasius as a fighter for the arenas. Her first battle: surviving training. The team's top priority: getting Daisy back before it's too late. Rated T for violence, swearing, torture, injury. Lots of angst.
1. Torn Worlds

_**Hi!**_

 _ **So it's been quite awhile since I've done anything for the AOS fandom but this idea was consuming my brain and, well, here it is!**_

 _ **Just a fair warning, this story is set in Season 5 so there are some spoilers, but it pretty much takes off after like the third episode and detours to a different path that I wanted to play with.**_

 _ **That being said, not everything is consistent either; this** is __**fanfiction after all!**_

 _ **Here are three things you should know about this fic: 1. This fic and its angst is family-centric (as opposed to a romance). 2. There will be major angst and Daisy whump. 3. There is swearing, violence, torture, and descriptions of injury, which is why it is rated T.**_

 _ **Update schedule will be at least once a week, if not quicker. This story is already complete so it will not affect the updates of In the Darkness I Will Guide You for anyone also reading that fic.**_

 _ **Also, I like to give a question of the day at the end of my chapters for readers to answer if they feel so inclined! No pressure or obligation to participate, it's just for those who want to.**_

 _ **ALERT! Spoilers for Season 5!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I do not own Agents of Shield**_

* * *

Daisy Johnson was no stranger to fighting.

Hell, she had spent the majority of her life doing it, first in foster homes, then in the streets, then against bad guys with SHIELD…

However as she stared at the metal door in front of her, Daisy knew for a fact this was going to be a fight unlike any other.

For one thing, she was being watched for _entertainment._

Even her most disturbing foster homes hadn't treaded that far.

Secondly, she was going to be sold into some kind of twisted intergalactic gladiator games.

There really were some comfort zones that Daisy did not mind staying in and the comfort zone of "not being sold to aliens" was one of those.

The metal door began sliding upward and Daisy heard her name being announced.

"Quake, Destroyer of Worlds."

Daisy grit her teeth and stepped forward, adjusting the leather wraps around her arms.  
 _Destroyer of Worlds._

She had wanted to deny it but staring out the window of the space station, she recognized her own handiwork, the growing power that resided between her lungs at the core of her being.

Daisy was terrified of exactly two things.

One: she was afraid of losing her family.

Two: she was afraid of herself.

This whole _go into outer space in a future where you've destroyed the world_ experience wasn't exactly soothing either of those fears.

She didn't know where Coulson, Mack, Yo-Yo, or Fitz were. May, according to the other fighter slave people that Daisy was now one of, was severely injured and being prepped to fight. Jemma was being forced to play servant to a seriously creepy alien who had somehow taken away her hearing. God, if she had one minute alone with that sick blue bastard…

Lifting her gaze slightly, Daisy caught her friend's gaze. She couldn't get used to the disturbing gold makeup spread across her brow and lips. Jemma's dark eyes met hers and Daisy could tell she was scared.

 _It's going to be okay_ , she wanted to assure the scientist.

This was only the warm up. The big show wasn't until the next day.

A trainer in a grey tunic walked through the opposite door, moving into a fighting pose. Simultaneous, she felt her own inhibitor switch off.

There was no way Daisy was going to do that.  
She suddenly had a flashback to a conversation she had with May long long ago.

 _"It looks dumb. Why do we have to pose before we fight? It's not like we're here for a photo-shoot."_

 _May had shot her a clearly-you-are-the-dumb-one look._

 _"Even if your body is ready, taking a position helps your mind become ready."_

Well Daisy's mind was not ready for this and it wasn't ever going to be.

Daisy Johnson was no blue alien's pet monkey.

A blow to her jaw caused her to briefly lose her train of thought as she went reeling to the ground. For a moment she stared at the cement beneath her, wondering what exactly would happen if she just refused to fight. She was pretty great at getting beaten up.

The trainer grabbed her by the collar of her shirt and threw her across the room.

 _"Don't just lay there, get up and defend yourself!"_ she heard May's voice in her head.

 _"Don't wanna,"_ Daisy thought. _"You're not here, you're just in my head."_

Daisy glanced back up toward her watching audience, pleased to find that Ugly Blue was looked severely annoyed.

Then she found Jemma again and her heart sank at the horrified look on her friend's face. The young woman was biting her lip, brown eyes wide with worry.

Gosh dang it. She was going to have to fight.

Daisy hauled herself to her feet, ducking to avoid the fist flying toward her face. Grabbing the trainer's arm in the end of its swing, she deftly twisted it behind the trainer, kicking him in the back.

He barely flinched, spinning on her.

 _Give them what they came for._

Daisy raised her arm and quaked him away.

It felt like cheating, she contemplated, watching the man fly through the air into the wall and slide down limply to the ground.

The audience clapped and Daisy felt as though her entire soul had drained from her being.

"Behold, Quake, Destroyer of Worlds!"

* * *

For a futuristic sci-fi-y world, the prison cells were downright medieval.

"Why do prisons all look the same?" Daisy complained to the guard ushering her in. He didn't even look at her, just locked the cell door. "Metal bars, cement floor, an uncomfortable bed… It's so damn cliché."

"The view of outer space is a new one at least," a voice commented.

"May?" Daisy spun around, peering into the cell next to hers. "Oh my god, May!"

The senior agent was propped against the wall, arm wrapped around her stomach, one leg crudely bandaged.

"The one and only," May smiled faintly before her expression morphed to one of concern. "What are you doing here?"

"You didn't hear? They're bringing back the gladiator games, except the special bonus edition with inhumans and aliens." Daisy sat down next to the bars separating her from her mentor, worriedly trying to assess how injured the woman was.

"I heard." May's voice was tight.

"I'm the damn prized stallion being broken in for sale." Daisy glanced away as May swore softly. She couldn't stand to see the worry and care she knew she would find in her mentor's gaze. She might fall apart if she did.

"Daisy."

She looked despite herself.

"We heard about a breeding program." May's dark eyes were fixed intensely on her.

"A breeding…" Daisy furrowed her brow, trying to figure out what May was asking, before her eyes widened. "No. Oh god, May no, I'm okay. They didn't touch me."

"Good." May relaxed incrementally. "Otherwise I would have to kill them all."

Daisy smiled.

"You still could," she suggested. May flashed her a small smile.

"You okay?" Daisy glanced at May's leg and split lip.

"Fine. Jemma?" The Asian agent changed the topic. "I saw her."

"Horrible taste in make-up, right?" Daisy slowly reached through the bars to grab May's hand, a wave of comfort easing over her as May squeezed her hand back.

"Is she okay?" May's voice was low and suddenly Daisy could barely keep her tears at bay.

"I don't know. They did something to her hearing." She clung to May's hand, worry for her friends washing over her. "How are Coulson and Mack and Yo-Yo?"

"Basically indentured servants in a junk yard," May grimaced. "But holding up. Worried about you and Jemma."

"Any sign of Fitz?"

Daisy shook her head.

They sat for a moment, quietly holding hands.

"They called me Quake, Destroyer of Worlds. It's like my battle name because I blew up the earth."

May turned quickly.

"You didn't blow up the world."

Daisy bit her lip, glancing up at the dark ceiling. "I did."

"Daisy…"

"No, May, I really did. All this… it's because of me."

"Bullshit." May's eyes flashed. "You don't have _that_ much control over the fate of the world. Don't think so highly of yourself."

"Gee thanks," Daisy complained, feeling substantially better. "I can always count on you to cheer me up."

May squeezed her hand, eyes softening and they lapsed into silence for a bit.

"May." Daisy broke the silence. "They're going to sell me, take me off this ship. Just in case I don't get a chance…"

"Don't you dare finish that sentence," May grit out.

"No, I have to tell you. You... you're the mom I never had. And Coulson is the dad and Fitz and Simmons are the brother and sister and…"

"Daisy."

"And we're all a messy glorious family and it's been the best thing I've ever had…"

"Daisy."

"So I just need you to know that I really appreciate you and love you guys so much and if I don't make it back, it's okay because I'm just happy I got the chance to be a part of our crazy family…"

"Daisy!" May nearly shouted and Daisy stared at the floor to try to stop the tears that were pooling. "Listen to me." The older agent painfully pulled her body closer to the bars separating them, reaching one bruised hand through the gaps to gently lift Daisy's chin, forcing her to look at her. "Listen. No matter what happens, I will find you. Do you hear me?" May searched the younger agent's face, dark eyes intense. "Coulson and I will find you and we will bring you home."

Slowly, gently, May wiped away the stray tear that had escaped Daisy's attempt at suppression.

The screech of the cell door caused them both to jump.

"Jemma!" Daisy jumped to her feet as her friend was let into May's cell. "Can you hear us?"

"I can hear," Jemma flashed Daisy a smile, eyes soft with relief. "They brought me here to look at May's injuries. I'm so glad to see you both." The woman attempted to roll up her excessively flowing sleeves, kneeling beside her senior agent.

"How are things out there?" May asked, gritting her teeth as Jemma gently pulled back the bandage on her leg to examine it.

"I have no idea, I can't hear anything." Jemma's voice was crisp but Daisy could hear the edge of frustration and concern.

"How is she?" Daisy wrapped her hands around the bars keeping her from her friends.

"It's not good. I'm going to see if I can get them to let me bring her to a different room with medical supplies." Jemma straightened.

"They're going to make her fight."

"I know. Maybe I can get her out of it if I…"  
"I'm right here," May reminded them grumpily.

"We know," Jemma and Daisy said in synchrony then turned back to each other.

"I'll call a guard," Daisy offered.

"Daisy…" Jemma paused. "I'm sorry. This is… so messed up."

"Are you okay?" Daisy bit her lip. "That blue guy is seriously creepy."

"I'm alright." Jemma swallowed hard. "Any sign of Fitz?" Her voice was light but her eyes betrayed the intensity of her feelings.

"I'm sorry."

Jemma glanced down. "Well. Considering what is happening here, perhaps it's for the best."

They exchanged a small smile before Daisy flagged down a guard.  
Watching Jemma help May limp out of the room, Daisy was hit by the sudden realization that she didn't know if or when she would see them again.

* * *

[SPOILER ALERT RIGHT HERE]

"I want her. Now. No bidding, no show. Just a simple transaction, brother to brother."

Daisy raised her head slightly, feeling sick.

She had just watched Ben, another Inhuman, be killed in front of her. Kasius had admitted that he wanted to sell Jemma with her as "persuasion" and although Fitz had shown up, she had no idea what his plan was.

Things were not looking too great.

The two blue men discussing her fate as though she were an object were not helping.

"What about all my lovely guests? Some have travelled very far to see this." Kasius's voice was smooth as usual.

His brother did not seem impressed.

"Let them travel to the fights to see her after I've finished her training. We both know you have no intention of selling her to them," Faulnak said.

"A good show is invaluable. It raises morale, bonds the audience together…"

"I will raise my offered price but only if you give her to me now."

Kasius paused. "I am open to persuasion," he said silkily, clearly relishing the opportunity to have his brother try to convince him.

"Distract your guests with your human projects; I'll take the girl while you do so. When you announce that she is gone, they will be upset but what will it matter when the next time they see you they will have to grovel at your feet in the face of your riches?"

Kasius considered. "It just seems like such a shame…"

"I add my final offer; I will talk to Father about your reinstatement in the family. But do not draw this out any further; make your decision or I will leave now."

Kasius's eyes lit up. "Deal." He turned to a guard. "Fetch the companion for departure."

"I have no need for the companion," Faulnak spoke up. "I have my own methods of persuasion that do not require another tiresome life form to maintain."

"Excellent." Kasius looked pleased. "The companion will make a nice consolation gift to the marauder; he already inquired if she was for sale. I imagine he will be most upset. I was going to sell Quake to him before I heard of your arrival…"

Daisy tried to hide her look of immense relief. No matter what happened to her, Jemma and Fitz would be okay. If they could just get May, then she could at least leave happy for whatever hell awaited her.

"Do what you want," Faulnak said brusquely, nodding to his own personal guard. "Prepare the ship."

"Be sure she is taken the back way where no guests can see her departure," Kasius warned.

A heavily armed guard nodded and Daisy found herself being pulled roughly out of the room, ushered down a back hallway. Servants scattered before them, bowing as they slipped into the shadows, clearly knowing the presence of one of Faulnak's guards and what it meant.

One servant did not flee their presence, rather stood in a doorway watching with distress.

"Jemma," Daisy murmured, catching her gaze.

"Don't speak." The guard pulled her chains roughly.

Daisy winced but set her jaw.

"That's my friend. Let me say goodbye," she growled.

The only response she got was her head slammed against the wall. Hard.

"Stop!" Daisy recognized Jemma's voice in the haze of her swimming vision. She suddenly found her friend standing in front of her.

"It's going to be okay," Daisy smiled slightly, hoping Jemma would understand. "It's okay."

"They're taking you, Daisy," Jemma was physically shaking. "Where are they taking you?"

The Faulnak guard grabbed Jemma by the front of her tunic. "How dare you speak?!"

"Put her down. You could bruise her." One of Kasius's guards had appeared, pushing Faulnak's guard back and moving Jemma out of his grip. "She's a gift; she is to be without blemish."

"Please, give us a minute," Jemma clutched at Daisy's manacled hands.

"No." The Faulnak guard pushed her out of the way.

"Jemma, it's going to be okay. Really." Daisy fought to remain close to her friend. "If things don't work out for me, give the team a big hug for me and live an awesome life with Fitz, god please marry that boy already, and know that I am so glad I got to have you in my life as my best friend and sister." She was yanked forward, the Faulnak guard clearly fed up.

"Daisy, no!" Jemma tried to follow but Kasius's guard held her back.

Daisy glanced back and gave her friend a brave smile before she was pushed around a corner. As she was taken further and further away from her friends, she fought the sudden feeling that she was alone in the galaxy.

* * *

 _ **What do you think?**_

 _ **This chapter is in some ways a nod/continuation to the darkness of the underlying themes of Season 5, such as objectification of women and slavery, which remain a reality in our world and are very** **unfortunately** **not limited to alien realms.**_

 _ **Also, I did change the order of some events. Sorry...**_

 _ **Okay, switching to a lighter topic. Question of the day: libraries or parks?**_

 _ **Make sure to let me know what you think! I'm excited to start this journey of a fic with you all!**_

 ** _~silverlining_**


	2. Fear is a Four Letter Word

_**Hello beautiful readers!**_

 _ **Thank you for the amazing initial response! I treasure all your reviews, favorites, follows, and views and I always desire to hear from you all.**_

 _ **Without further ado, allow me to present chapter two!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I do not own Agents of Shield. Luckily for everyone...**_

* * *

Fitz could tell that Jemma was distressed.

He glanced at her from his spot beside Kasius, wishing he could just kill the blue psychopath and get his team out of this whole messed up situation.

 _"What's wrong?"_ he tried to ask Jemma with his eyes, hoping that they still had what they had before the whole Framework and him turning into a mass murderer and Jemma watching him kill someone and then catapulting into the future in outer space…

Jemma glanced around, making sure she wasn't being watched, then mouthed the word _"Daisy."_

They stared at each other for a second, far too much to say and no way to say it.

"You fancy her?" Kasius had followed his gaze.

Fitz tore his eyes away from Jemma's.

"She intrigues me. Did she really travel in time and space?" Fitz turned to the Kree.

"She did, with Quake."

"And you said there was a third one?" Fitz remembered all too well how the alien had announced that before his assistant brutally murdered an inhuman in front of them all at lunch.

His stomach rolled.

In the Framework he had done similar things. Was he such a man now?

"There is. Which brings us to our first battle." Kasius smiled at Fitz before standing up.

Whatever the blue man announced, it was lost on Fitz as he watched May limp into the arena.

 _This is not good._

Clearly, the senior agent was severely injured. Although she held her own well, of course, the odds were not in her favor.

The feeling of dread grew and Fitz tried not react as May was slammed down into the ground by the inhuman she had been forced in combat against.

Automatically he glanced at Jemma, who shared his horror.

In a final last ditch effort, May tried to lunge at the inhuman. Her leg did not hold; rather it crumpled beneath her. She fell to the ground, blood dripping from her mouth as she turned to look at her adversary.

"I want her," Fitz announced, standing up suddenly.

The battle halted.

"My good friend, clearly this human's prime has passed," Kasius raised an eyebrow. "I am surprised that someone of your stature would be interested in such a purchase."

Fitz took a deep breath. "I intend to purchase Quake and her companion. While I can use the companion to persuade Quake, who shall I use to control the companion? I don't desire to do anything to my prized fighter that might jeopardize her performance. If this woman truly travelled with them and is expendable, what better candidate for the job?" Fitz shrugged nonchalantly, his heart pounding in his chest as he felt like throwing up at the taste of his own words.

 _May was going to kill him. Then Jemma was going to kill him. Then May was going to kill him again._

Kasius chuckled softly. "I can see you are a man who gets what he wants," he winked. "Very well." He raised his hand and a guard grabbed May and pulled her away. "When we conclude, we shall negotiate the terms of your purchase."

Fitz nodded, sitting down.

Another pair of inhumans fought and Fitz stared stoically at the wall behind them, not able to watch.

Another pair was introduced and Fitz couldn't hold back any longer.  
"Where is Quake? Where is the battle I have been promised? I'm bored of these children fighting each other!"

Kasius's eyebrow twitched.

"We must finish."  
"If you insist on childish displays, I have work to attend to outside. Call me when you have what I have come here for." Fitz stormed out of the room, pulling out his communication device as soon as he made it out of the room, his stomach rolling.

He couldn't watch, couldn't see the blows and pain and see his own Framework actions in the reflection of the congealing blood.

Leaving fit his character so he did it.

"My friend, I have bad news."

Kasius had followed him, although Fitz could still hear the faint sounds of a battle in the arena continuing on.

"What is it now?" Fitz's annoyance was real. He noticed that a guard had brought Jemma along as well, his chest clenching with fear.

"I am planning on telling the other guests at the conclusion of the current event, but I respect your character and know that the sooner you know, the better." Kasius looked almost nervous. "My brother offered payment I could not refuse; Quake has been sold. Faulnak has already taken her from this ship to his training center."

Fitz felt his world sway slightly beneath his feet.

 _Daisy. Oh god. Daisy._

Kasius misinterpreted his silence for anger and hastily motioned to the guard who brought Jemma forward.

"A gift, for you. I cannot tell you how much I regret not being able to offer Quake to you. Perhaps this will slightly cool your rage."

Fitz glanced at Jemma who stared blankly back at him.

He had Jemma. He could get May.

He wasn't going to just let Daisy go though! They were family; they didn't leave one another behind.

But he had to do what was strategically best for his team, including Daisy. If he blew a fuse, he could damage his relationship with Kasius, which could be useful in the quest he now knew they would go on to get Daisy back.

His teammate was already gone.

He had to salvage what he had so he could strike back harder. And he had to get Jemma and May to safety while he could.

Mind made up, Fitz turned to Kasius, face hard.

"I am not pleased." He clenched his jaw. "But I accept your gift."

Kasius looked visibly relieved.

"Allow me to add in the older fighter you desired, free of charge, as a sign of my true apologies."

Fitz tilted his head.

"Business is business. I understand why you made the decision you did. I just advise you do not waste my time again. I'll have the two women loaded onto my ship immediately."

There was no reason to stay a second longer.

* * *

"What the hell is going on?" May turned to Jemma as soon as they were deposited in a closed off room of a space ship. "Where is Daisy?"

Jemma bit her lip.  
"She's gone."

May's eyes flared and she rose to her feet despite the fact she was dripping blood and could barely stand. "What do you mean?"

"They sold her to Kasius's brother," Jemma choked out. "I saw them take her, out the back way so nobody could see."

May swore, swaying on her feet, dark eyes alight with fury.

"May, please, sit down," Jemma moved to help the older agent, trying to keep her tears at bay. "You're badly hurt."

"She's right," Fitz agreed, causing them to spin around. He had opened the door, sagging slightly against the doorframe. "Don't injure yourself further; we need everyone to be in their best state so we go to get Daisy back."

"Fitz!" Jemma couldn't help but rush forward, finally able to hug him. "How on earth…"

"It's a long story," Fitz cut her off. "A long story I _promise_ I will tell, but not right now. For the moment, let's focus on getting out of here and helping you two."

Another man appeared next to him, examining them evenly.  
"Who is this?" May asked bluntly.

"This is Enoch. He's going to get the ship started and away from this hellhole until we can figure out what to do next while I get the capsule out of your ear, Jemma."

"What?" Jemma stared at him.

Fitz held up a pair of pliers apologetically.

Many terrifying minutes later, Jemma shook her head appreciatively, finally washing the stupid gold make-up off her face and able to hear the world uninhibited. She looked at herself in the mirror and smiled slightly.

"Much better."

"I think so too." Fitz was watching in the open doorway.

Jemma turned to him, noting the way his shoulders were slightly hunched and his eyes tired.

"Hi."

"Enoch is helping May."

"Good."

She kissed him gently and for a moment they just held each other, taking comfort in the other's presence.

"We're going to get Daisy," Jemma pulled back, finding Fitz's gaze and holding it steadily. "And then we are going to kill Kasius."

Fitz didn't react.

"The last time I spent any substantial time with Daisy was in the Framework when I was torturing her."

Jemma took his hand automatically, her heart dropping.

She knew that Daisy had been tortured but never actually saw or heard anything about it.

"It's not your fault. It wasn't you."  
"But that's precisely it; it _was_ me!" Fitz pulled away from her. "We have to get her back, if just for the sole reason that I _have_ to apologize to her."

"We will. We will get the whole team and go back home. I know it."

Fitz suddenly, desperately, pulled her close. "I was so scared something had happened to you. I need you, Jemma Simmons." His frame shook slightly.

Jemma held him tight.

"I was scared too. But now I'm ready to rain hell and bring back our family."

* * *

"What are you afraid of, Quake, Destroyer of Worlds?"

Daisy stared at the wall in front of her, studiously ignoring the large red trainer pacing back and forth in front of her. Her neck ached slightly where a new inhibitor had been injected in. Very slightly she tugged against the metal bands holding her in the chair. They didn't budge.

"Answer me!"

Her silence was rewarded with a powerful punch to the face but Daisy still did not speak.

"What are you afraid of?" The red man crouched in front of her, his red eyes searching hers.

 _Two things: 1. Losing my family. 2. Myself._

 _"What are you afraid of?!"_

"Unicorns."

The trainer stared at her blankly.

"I'm afraid of unicorns, okay?" Daisy raised her eyebrows at him. "I mean, why are they rainbow colored? Is it a disease? Is it contagious?"

The next punch left her spitting blood onto the ground.

"I will tell you. Here, you fear one thing: failure."

The trainer wrapped his hands around her neck, slowly cutting off Daisy's air supply. She closed her eyes, fighting panic as her lungs began craving oxygen.

"I will teach you not to fear pain, to not even to fear death," the trainer whispered in her ear. "You will face indescribable pain. You will face death. But a good arena fighter only fears failure."

He released Daisy just as her vision was starting to go black and she let out a strangled gasp.

"You…" her throat was tender. "You have such a beautiful way with words. Have you ever thought about becoming a poet?" Daisy panted.

The trainer turned on her. "You have good spirit. I will enjoy breaking you. Let's begin training."

"Training", as Daisy realized a few minutes in, was more or less a "beat-the-shit-out-of-you session", which really sucked. She wouldn't have minded learning some cool new alien moves.

Daisy tuned out about quarter of an hour in, letting her mind wander elsewhere. She wondered if May was okay, if Jemma and Fitz got away with her, where Coulson and Mack and Yo-Yo were. She thought about Mack's daughter Hope in the Framework and wondered how Mack was holding up. She tried to remember what actually ever happened to Coulson's car, Lola. What had even happened to her own van? That was so long ago. As she thought, her memories became more and more muddled with pain.

Suddenly the blows stopped, the pain pleasantly leveling off instead of growing.

The trainer looked at her approvingly.

"You are good. Now that I have assessed your beginning tolerance, we can really begin."

He pressed a button and suddenly the new inhibitor in Daisy's neck began to hum slightly.

"What…" Daisy suddenly was hit by the most excruciating pain she had ever felt, her back arching, limbs shaking as a scream was torn from her throat.

"Better." The trainer clicked off the device and Daisy collapsed against the chair, head lulling in semi-consciousness. "When you have become used to this feeling, you will no longer even register the pain of the arena."

"Go to hell," Daisy gasped.

The trainer just pushed the button again.

* * *

 _ **Question of the day: popcorn or chips?**_

 ** _Until the next chapter!_**

 ** _~silverlining_**


	3. A Dark World

_**Heyyy!**_

 _ **So things are getting rather dark and heavy... But we will make it through!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I don't own Agents of Shield**_

* * *

Three dead Kree, two gunshot wounds (non-fatal, thankfully), one make-shift trash can explosive, and three extra fugitives later, the entire team had reunited on Fitz's ship.

May was trying to explain what had happened in the upper chambers of Kasius and where Daisy was while Jemma bandaged new wounds.

Coulson, as expected, was taking the news the hardest. His jaw remained permanently clenched as he paced, blue eyes searching the space in front of him as though it would provide him answers.

"Sir, please, I need to look at that wound." Jemma's cool hands guided him to a chair.

"Was she scared?" he asked, not even wincing as Jemma began cleaning the bullet wound in his shoulder.

"No. She told me to give you all a big hug from her." Jemma's eyes remained fixed on her work.

"It's always her. The universe just won't give her a break, but she still remains one of the best people I have ever met," Coulson shook his head numbly. "She deserves to be safe. To be loved."

"She said she was okay if she didn't make it because she got to be a part of our family." May had silently found her way to Coulson, sitting beside her. He found her hand and clutched it.

"That's just it; she gives everything she has and expects nothing in return! She is too good for this world." Coulson shook his head.

Jemma's hands trembled slightly as she began bandaging Coulson's shoulder.

"We are going to get her back," May said quietly, her voice leaving no room for questioning. "I'm not going to tell you what else she said because she can tell you herself."

"We've got coordinates on Faulnak's training center," Yo-Yo called out, brow creased with worry. "Apparently this guy runs a whole fighting enterprise."

"Bring us there," Coulson said, standing up.

"We're going to Faulnak's training center?" Flint, one of the Lighthouse kids they had brought along, spoke up, his eyes wide. "You know that's like one of the most fortified places in the galaxy, right?"

Coulson turned to the boy.

"What would you do if it were your family?" he asked quietly.

The boy looked back at him steadily.

"I'd already be there."

The spaceship smoothly shifted into motion.

* * *

(line)

Barely conscious, Daisy heard her trainer talking to someone else about her.

"She's doing well."

"How soon?"

"It depends on if you want her broken or not."

A pause.

"We can break her later. The Master wants her to begin as soon as possible."

"The usual pre-arena procedure?" her trainer seemed curious. "It takes some time to recover."

"Then begin as soon as possible."

Silence.

Suddenly Daisy found herself being dragged to her feet, her head dunked in a bucket of ice-cold water. Adrenaline screamed through her veins and gasping she blinked water out of her eyes, vision clearing.

"Good to see you awake." Trainer From Hell grinned at her, teeth black against red skin.

"That would not be the first thing I'd want to see waking up in the morning," Daisy groaned.

The punch he landed was faintly annoying and Daisy shook her head to clear it. _Damn, he was right, the pain really wasn't too bad after what they had put her through the previous night._

"Come on." She was dragged out of her room, through the halls of the training facility, finally arriving at a small arena. The heavy door clanged shut behind them and Red Dude turned off Daisy's inhibitor.

She flexed her hands, considering using her powers against the trainer who she now hated with every fiber of her being.

"Punch me," he grinned at her, black teeth hideous.

Daisy was not going to let that offer pass by. She swung her fist.

As soon as she was a few inches away from the trainer, her muscles seized as her inhibitor began humming again.

Death would be preferable, Daisy reflected, as her body arched in the wake of the now-familiar sensation that robbed her of all concepts of space and time and filled their gaps with pure pain.

Then it was over and she found herself heaving on the ground.

"That is what happens if you try to touch me." Huge black boots stepped into her vision. "Got it, human?"

She just swore and the trainer chuckled.

"Good. Now, we are going to spend quite some time here together so let me finally introduce myself. I am Rranik. I am the best trainer Faulnak has and I will be in charge of you. The rules of this arena are simple. You may kill combatants who are in red shirts; they are training fodder. If they are dressed in blue, as you are, you are not permitted to kill them. At any time I can activate your Distressor, the sensation from your inhibitor that you have been becoming acquainted to. The control to the Distressor is imbedded in my skin; you cannot reach it so do not even think about trying." Rranik paused to watch Daisy slowly haul herself to her feet. "Now tell me what you fear."

"Failure." Daisy ground her teeth. "And unicorns."

Rranik glared at her for a moment but let it go.

"First combatant," he snapped. A door opened and a young man in a red shirt stumbled in. "Fight him."

Daisy just stared at the boy. "Look, I don't want to hurt…"

"Ahhhh! I will kill you!" The boy rushed at her, eyes wild.

"Damn it," Daisy muttered, raising her hand to quake him away.

Caught in the vibrations, he hit the wall hard and fell limp to the floor.

"No!" Rranik growled. "Do you know why you are here?"

"Deranged psychopathy?" Daisy suggested, crossing her arms.

"You are here for entertainment. So I suggest you learn how to put up an entertaining fight." Rranik glared at her and pulled a knife out of nowhere, stalking toward the red-shirted boy.

"What are you…" Daisy stared in horror as the trainer suddenly plunged the knife into the boy's chest. "No!" she moved forward but was stopped in her tracks by her Distressor.

"Again." Rranik nodded at the arena servant who hauled the body out. Another figure, this one a light pink alien, came out in a red shirt and stood ready for the sign to attack.

Daisy stared at Rranik, chest heaving, not able to hide her distress.

"Are you just going to kill her at the end of this?" she asked, voice trembling.

Rranik's red eyes were cold.

"That depends on you." He signaled to the new alien, who rushed forward screaming.

Daisy ducked the first blow before returning it with her own. The pink alien just growled and blew a cloud of white gas into her face.

"Shit!" Daisy backed up, her face on fire. Using her quakes, she immediately pushed the gas away, creating a shield as the alien hissed at her again.

 _Not too fast._

As much as she didn't appreciate this alien setting her skin alight with gas, Daisy didn't want her to be killed.

She decided to push the alien up from the ground by quaking the space beneath her. As the pink alien sailed into the air, screeching, Daisy pushed herself up as well, colliding with her opponent in the air, slamming her down into the ground hard.

Too hard.

Daisy's stomach turned as she heard something snap and the alien did not stir beneath her.

"Better. Thank you for saving me the work of killing her," Rranik commented.

Daisy turned away and threw up.

"Again."

Another red shirted figure was brought in, this one an older man covered in glowing tattoos.

"Nope." Daisy backed up. "I'm out. You can kill me or whatever, but I'm not doing this."

She expected her Distressor to be activated, was as ready as she could be for the blinding pain but it didn't come.

Instead, the man in the red shirt began screaming, body seizing as he collapsed to the ground.  
"Stop it!" Daisy turned to Rranik. "If you want to punish someone, punish me!"

"Here we only fear failure," Rranik looked at her. "You bring failure to that man by not allowing him to fulfill his job and you fail to fulfill yours. I know you do not fear pain, or even death, Quake. Your request to be punished has made that abundantly clear. That is good; those fears will hold you back in battle. But it is time for you to learn to fear failure."

"Just stop." Daisy couldn't stop the tears that sprang to her eyes as she watched the man writhe on the ground. "Stop it!"

It was all the more distressing because she knew exactly what that man was feeling.

"Every time you fail, someone else fails." Rranik's red eyes bored into her. He didn't even seem aware of the man's screams tearing through the air. "Nobody here fears anything but failure. Remember that when you cause someone else to fail. Their defeat by your hand is the best fate they can ever hope to receive."

He looked at the red shirted man, touching the button on his wrist. The man fell limp on the ground, an arena servant rushing forward to pull his body away.

"Again."

* * *

"We need a plan."

They were gathered around the ship's monitors, looking through blueprints of the fortress that was awaiting them. For the moment, they were space-parked on a small moon slowly orbiting a nearby planet in order to avoid detection.

"This is a suicide mission," Deke grumbled.

May slapped him. "Remember who got Daisy into this situation in the first place," she warned him, eyes glinting dangerously.

"Don't let her throw me into outer space," Deke backed away.

"Can't help you there," Jemma glared at him.

"We can use cloakers to get near enough but once we're on there, there's no telling where Daisy is. Or how we could even get to her without immediately getting killed."

"Actually, I have an idea."

They all looked at Tess.

"Every facility has garbage." She shrugged. "I know how this galaxy treats janitors; they basically ignore them. I'm kind of an expert on this. Nobody expects anything from the lowest workers; if we could infiltrate and pose as janitors, I think we would have a fair amount of mobility. The first thing Faulnak will expect is some grand rescue mission, crashing through the front doors and all that. So we have to go for the opposite. Kree are the proudest things that breathe, they don't bother with things like garbage. We can use that to our advantage."

Flint stood up. "She's right. And I know how we can get the uniforms."

"Where?" May's voice was no-nonsense.

"You aren't going to like it," Flint glanced at Tess.

"I'm all ears," Coulson said.

Flint took a deep breath.

"When people die, they usually are ejected to a space grave site nearby. Because there's no atmosphere, there is no decomposition. It should be pretty easy to find some uniforms."

Coulson stared at the boy who shrugged apologetically.

"We don't usually steal clothes from the dead," Coulson looked disturbed.

"They won't mind. I wouldn't," Tess shrugged.

"Me either," Flint agreed.

"You know you kids should be worrying about things like parties and homework and college, right?" Coulson stared at them.

Deke clapped him on the back, chuckling darkly.

"Welcome to the future."

* * *

 ** _Question of the day: favorite color?_**

 ** _~silverlining_**


	4. Infiltration

_**Hello! The story goes onward!**_

 _ **Also, I have noticed another story on AOS fanfiction using some intriguingly familiar writing... Well I suppose imitation is the most sincere form of flattery, right?**_

 ** _I'm keeping the chapters long which means the story is going to be not as many chapters (obviously). We are over halfway done at this point, just warning you so you are prepare!_**

 ** _Disclaimer: I don't own Agents of Shield_**

* * *

Dripping sweat and blood, Daisy collapsed on the chair Rranik motioned to in the medical wing. She didn't know how many beings in red shirts she had fought. She didn't want to know. Her body was numb, her mind was numb, everything was numb but also on fire at the same time.

"Species?" A tentacled doctor examined her, poking her arm.

"Inhuman." Rranik answered. The doctor grunted and went to a wall lined with items. She came back with a small pointed metal tube.

"Hold still." The tube was slid into Daisy's arm, right above wrist, so far in only a small metal circle sat on top of the skin.

"What the hell is that?" Daisy grit her teeth.

"Permanent access to your blood stream," Rranik explained as the doctor poked in a needle.

"Got the vein," the doctor rasped happily as the tube filled with red. She pulled the needle back out, the access point automatically closing. The doctor turned again to the shelves lined with strange medical objects.

"Damn." Daisy stared at her wrist.

"She needs some Pulse." Rranik called out to the doctor before turning back to Daisy. "You get one dose then we're heading back to the arena."

"What's it going to do?" Daisy asked, her mind shutting down at the mention of the arena.

"Just a simple energy boost. You won't get these in the games though, it's illegal."

"It's illegal," Daisy repeated, not sure whether to laugh or cry. "Out of all the things I've seen today, the slavery, torture, murder… doping is illegal."

"It is not fun to watch a fight that isn't fair."

Daisy stared at him. "There is absolutely nothing about this that is fair."

Rranik bared his black teeth in a smile.

The doctor came back and inserted a small syringe into the access point, slowly emptying it.

First Daisy's arm itched. Then it burned. Then her entire body felt as if it were on fire. But when the feeling faded, a burst of energy took its place.

"Let's go."

They headed back to the arena, Daisy suddenly reaching for the feeling of mental numbness. It was far preferable to the alternative.

"You are shutting down," Rranik noticed. "Good. Let your body do what it has to do."

Daisy glared at the floor, suddenly overwhelmed by the feeling of helplessness.

She was going to have to fight. If she refused, there would be hell to pay and she wasn't going to be the one to pay it. She couldn't watch Rranik torture another being on her account. But how could she just _listen_ to them and hurt beings?

She didn't have much of a choice. Either way, harm happened. One way though she could slightly decrease the suffering.

"What do you fear?" Rranik hissed. Daisy closed her eyes. She couldn't even feel her own body at this point and she didn't want to.

"Failure."

"Good."

Rranik motioned to the opponent door and this time a young woman in a blue shirt came out.

"Remember, blue shirt means you cannot kill," Rranik reminded her.

 _Thank god._

Daisy had never been so thankful to see a particular color of clothing.

Following the woman in blue was another woman dressed similarly to Rranik, her skin a pale green. Another trainer, Daisy assumed.

Her inhibitor switched off and she slowly examined her opponent. With red hair and pale blue eyes, she seemed human.

That was until lasers shot from the eyes.

Daisy didn't think, just reacted. She vibrated the air around her in a shield, bending back the light.

The woman screamed as she was hit by her own attack, suddenly lifting up off the ground, still shooting lasers.

Taking a deep breath, Daisy joined her in the air, using one hand to keep herself in the flight, the other pushing wave after wave of vibrations at the woman. The woman managed to dodge a couple before being knocked out of the sky by one.

Daisy landed next to her, jumping as another blast of lasers barely missed her. One more hit her square in the shoulder, burning a neat round hole in her shirt and branding her skin.

Aggravated and tired of the fight, Daisy hit the woman hard with a vibration. The woman crumpled, breathing heavily, clearly spent.

Rranik motioned for the fight to be over, stalking up to Daisy.

"You depend too much on your powers."

The next fight, he kept the inhibitor on.

Her opponent was a large reptilian-like animal with a spiked tail.

Unable to use her powers, Daisy relied instead on her agility and the alien's limited turn radius. After getting her thigh sliced open by the tail, she managed to jump on the creature's back and choke him from behind.

Rranik watching approvingly as the alien finally collapsed and Daisy rolled off him, breathing heavily.

"Good. You are ready enough," he nodded.

"Ready for what?" Daisy turned before feeling the cold metal of Rranik's knife slide into her side.

She saw rather than felt the blood begin to drip down her tunic. Then the feeling hit and she clenched her jaw so tight she could feel her teeth groan under the pressure. It didn't hurt as much as she expected, she was still numb, but it was painful nonetheless.

"Why?" She looked up from the stab wound to stare at her trainer. "Are you trying to kill me?"

"The most important task of a fighter is to learn to battle while injured. Until you can win a fight while half-dead, you are not worthy of the arena."

"And if I die?" Daisy stared at him. At this point, she wasn't necessarily opposed to that.

Rranik shrugged. "You won't. That is my job; to bring you right to the brink and back again. If worst comes to worst, you're inhuman; we'll just bring you back to life."

Daisy turned away, one arm wrapped around her side in an attempt to stem the bleeding, her mind reeling.

She wanted her family. She wanted to be back on the Bus. She wanted this to be over.

She wanted everything she couldn't have.

"Next opponent," Rranik called out.

(line)

* * *

"Doesn't quite fit," Mack looked down at the loose fitting brown tunic.

At least, it was supposed to be loose fitting; on him it was way too tight. Nutrition was clearly an issue among slaves and they hadn't been able to find anything that fit the large muscular man better.

"Shhh," Jemma hissed while Yo-Yo just rolled her eyes.

"You got anything?" Coulson asked Tess quietly, who was staring out into the hall, completely unruffled considering they had just crawled through a garbage shaft and nearly died several times in the process.

"Yeah." The girl turned back to them. "Janitors go in sets of two which is good for us. It looks like the main two jobs are cleaning and trash removal. They do not speak and I don't think they can hear so when you're out there _do not_ react to sound or speak, okay?" Her dark eyes surveyed them seriously.

They nodded, pairing up quickly. Fitz and Simmons together. Mack and Yo-Yo. Coulson and Tess.

The rest of the team was waiting on the ship. They almost had to knock May out to prevent her from coming; she had tried to convince them that her basically useless leg wouldn't be any problem.

"Everyone back here in one hour, no exceptions. If we haven't found Daisy by then, we'll regroup, share what we found, then go out again," Coulson instructed them.

"If you need to hide, get into an air duct or hide somewhere dirty," Tess advised.

Coulson nodded, giving the girl an appreciative smile. "And remember, if you have to choose between confrontation or hiding, hide. Do not engage unless there is no other option. If we want to get Daisy, we have to remain undetected as long as possible."

Everyone nodded, faces serious.

"Alright. Let's bring our girl home."

* * *

(line)

Daisy didn't know when she lost conscious or when she regained it but Rranik was there both times. Somewhere between the two points in which she left and came back to reality, she had been moved to her room.

"Sleep well?"

She could barely move.

Rranik dragged her off the sad excuse for a bed and dunked her head in ice water, leaving her trembling and gasping.

Her tunic was soaked with blood but she was most concerned at the fact that she could see the plethora of injuries she was covered in but could no longer feel them.

"How am I alive?" she asked.

"We boosted you with some drugs." Rranik led her out of the room. "The best part about training is that once you're through it, fighting in games will feel like a dream come true."

Daisy actually didn't doubt that at the moment.

"I'm going to die," she stated, unsure how she was even on her feet.

"No." Rranik pulled out a syringe, grabbing Daisy's arm and injected it into her access point. Her body felt slightly better as the drug flooded her system but she was pretty sure it wasn't going to last. "You're going to learn."

"Do people try to kill themselves here?" Daisy looked at her trainer dully.

"At the beginning, yeah, but your Distressor will go off if you do anything to harm yourself." Rranik seemed to be in a good mood, he flashed her one of his black toothy grins.

They walked through the hall to their arena, Rranik nodding and smiling at other trainers and their charges.

A strangely familiar figure caught her gaze and Daisy's eyes widened.

Bent over, scrubbing the floor were Mack and Yo-Yo.

As she passed, Yo-Yo looked up, catching her gaze. The woman's face paled slightly, clearly trying not to react to the fact that Daisy looked like a dead woman walking. She looked down again quickly.

Daisy's mind was racing as they entered their arena, feeling Yo-Yo's gaze on her back. Mack and Yo-Yo were here; that meant the rest of the team probably was as well.

She tried to suppress the sudden burst of hope that bloomed in her chest.

Her family.

They had come.

 _No matter what happens, I will find you. Coulson and I will find you and we will bring you home._ May's voice rang in her head.

Daisy almost cried.

She wanted May. She wanted Coulson. She wanted her mom and dad.

Because that was who they were. Her mom and dad.  
She hoped they knew that. She was going to tell them if she saw them.

Not if. When.

* * *

"We found Daisy."

They had re-gathered in the garbage chute. Yo-Yo spoke the words they all wanted to hear but Jemma could tell something was seriously wrong.

"I've never seen her look so defeated," Yo-Yo said quietly, her accent hugging her soft words. "She's not in good shape. She's hurt."

The team silently absorbed those words.

"All the more reason to get her out as soon as possible," Jemma felt that she had to speak up. The feeling of hopelessness in the training center was almost suffocating and she could tell the whole team was being affected by it. They had all seen things in this training center in the single hour of posing as janitors that they would never un-see.

"Yo-Yo, we're going to need your powers. You can grab and go?" Coulson moved them toward action.

"If she's in the same place," Yo-Yo nodded. "I will need to be closer though."

"Simmons and Fitz, you're in charge of getaway," Coulson turned to them. "We are probably going to need to get out a lot faster than we got in."

"Yes sir," Jemma nodded, exchanging a look with Fitz. "We can do that." Her mind was already churning away at the problem; they needed to stay hidden but also move quickly.

"Mack and Tess, you help FitzSimmons in whatever way they need. Yo-Yo, I'll come with you once we have the beginning of a plan to get out." Coulson looked at them all. "Sound good?"

Everyone nodded.

"I can't get into that door," Yo-Yo hissed, mopping the floor near the door she had seen Daisy disappear into several hours ago. "It's locked." She had already tried several times in the gaps between traffic.

"We'll go around to the other side," Coulson murmured, gazing intently at the spot he was cleaning.

They slowly made their way around the curve of the hallway, finding another door on the other side. Even as they watched, a trainer and being in a blue shirt came out, the alien in the blue shirt half-conscious.

Coulson casually stuck his mop in the crack of the door, keeping it from closing.

"Let's go."

Yo-yo grabbed a small bottle of cleaning solution and used it prop the door open before she and Coulson hurried down the hall away from the room. Once they were positioned by the air duct that would take them back to the meeting place, Yo-Yo prepared to jump.

"Ready?" She looked at Coulson.

"Ready."

Yo-Yo disappeared. But she did not come back.

(line)

* * *

 _ **Hmmm I wonder what happened?! :O**_

 _ **Question of the day: cake or ice cream?**_

 ** _Until the next chapter!_**

 ** _~silverlining_**


	5. The Choices We Make

**_My laptop is about to die!_**

 ** _I'm gonna really quick try to throw this onto the internet before it does!_**

 _ **Disclaimer: I do not own Agents of Shield**_

* * *

Daisy fell to her knees panting and spitting blood. She swore softly as her body trembled and the world swayed.

"Get up," Rranik grabbed her by the back of her blue tunic. "You have to keep going.

"I literally can't and for once in my life I'm using that word correctly," Daisy ground out.

"The moment you think you can't go any longer is the moment you must learn how to do so," Rranik told her roughly.

Daisy just swayed, one arm wrapped around her side.

Even if her team was here, she was going to be dead before they made it to her.

Suddenly the air in front of her rippled and Daisy felt arms wrap around her.

She was flying through space for a split second before she hit something hard. Falling to the ground, Daisy saw Yo-Yo roll away from her, groaning on the ground.

Her heart froze in her chest as Rranik stepped toward the other inhuman.

"Where did you come from?" He tilted his head. "Didn't you know this room is fitted with inhibitors for precisely your kind? You can get in but not out. I've never seen the point until right this second." Rranik smiled mirthlessly.

Yo-Yo didn't waste any time, she flew at the trainer with fists raised.

Rranik pushed the button on his wrist and Daisy's Distressor activated, pulling a scream from her lungs as her body seized up.

Yo-Yo froze, turning to Daisy, dark eyes frantic. Rranik took advantage of the distraction and wrapped his huge arms around her throat.

"Wherever you cam from, it does not matter because you are here now. I will add you to our collection, you will make a fine fighter."

Something in Daisy snapped.

She would not let Rranik touch her friend. She would not let him do to Yo-Yo what he had done to her.

Nobody in the universe deserved that and Daisy would be damned if she let one of her teammates suffer that fate.

Her inhibitor was still off from the last fight. She had one chance to do something.

Pure panic and pure determination met as Daisy closed her eyes, reaching out with her mind to the vibrations in the room.

 _Everything in the universe vibrates. And everything has a resonant frequency at which it will fall apart_.

Daisy turned her mind to her own inhibitor and the inhibitors in the room, searching through layer upon layer of waves for their resonant frequency.

She found it, curled in the depths of her mind.

Wrapping her soul around it, Daisy turned her energy outward and pushed the resonant frequency out of her being with everything she had.

Faintly, detachedly, she heard herself screaming but felt nothing.

Then, one final burst, and everything was silent.

Raising a shaking hand, blood dripping unnoticed from her neck and mouth, Daisy blasted Rranik against the wall with all the energy she had left.

He hit the ground and did not stir.

* * *

(lines)

"Inhibitors are down," Daisy told Yo-Yo then passed out.

Coulson tried not to panic as Yo-Yo failed to reappear with Daisy.

This was the one thing he had not made a back up plan for.

Still attempting to stay under the radar, Coulson began to make his way back to the room, heart pounding in his chest.

About halfway there, he was hit with a wave of vibrations that rocked the entire center.

"Daisy." He dropped his mop and began running as the entire center exploded into chaos.

"Coulson!" Yo-Yo burst out of the room, holding the limp form of a girl.

Coulson froze as he stared at Daisy, icy fear infiltrating his veins.

Seemingly small and fragile in Yo-Yo's arms, Daisy's head lolled limply, blood running down her neck.

"Is she dead?"

He couldn't breathe.

Not Daisy. Not his Daisy, his kiddo…

"No. But she needs help. Now."

Yo-Yo's tone of voice yanked him back into action and they took off down the hall.

* * *

(line)

FitzSimmons were putting the finishing touches on the plan when the ground rocked beneath their feet.

Screams and yells followed shortly, the center exploding into chaos.

"What the hell…" Mack stared out into the hall.

"Daisy," Jemma murmured. "She did something."

"They should be coming then," Tess commented.

"I'm not sure if stealth mode is as much of a priority anymore," Fitz bit his lip, listening as the chaos above them grew louder and louder. "I think there's a revolt happening."

They waited tensely, Jemma playing with her sleeves, Mack pacing, Fitz fiddling with a bit of metal, Tess just staring.

"Time to go!" Yo-Yo burst into the space, jolting them all into motion.

"Daisy!" Jemma's hand flew to her mouth as she caught sight of her unconscious friend.

"Move now, worry later," Yo-Yo's voice was tight.

"We have a new plan. It's called get out of here before this place explodes. We don't need to worry about stealth; Daisy knocked out all the inhibitors," Coulson explained as they ran.

"Holy…" Tess's mouth fell open. "That means all the fighters with powers…"

"Now cannot be controlled and this place is going down fast," Fitz finished for her.

"We can take a garbage trawler," Jemma decided. "This way!"

"Go faster! This place is going into lockdown!" Yo-Yo yelled.

They slid into the spaceship hangar just as a hue wall crashed down behind them.

Other slaves had apparently had the same idea, chaos reigning as beings of all kinds rushed to whatever ship they could find and taking off.

"Got one!" Mack wrestled open the door of a heavy duty garbage ship. "Get in!"

They crammed in, Yo-Yo still cradling Daisy's still form.

The ship lurched, throwing them against the side, groaning as it slowly lifted off and sped up.

"We're out."

"Guys," Yo-Yo's face was streaked with tears, eyes wide with panic. "Daisy just stopped breathing."

* * *

(line)

May felt her world switch into slow motion as soon as she saw Daisy.

Jemma was barking orders, demanding tools, Mack was laying the girl down on a table as Fitz and Yo-Yo raced around trying to gather what Jemma needed.

Coulson just clutched Daisy's limp hand, his eyes glued to her still face.

May realized she was moving forward, her body reacting without her command. Her dark eyes fixed on the girl lying deathly still despite the surrounding chaos.

"Daisy." She felt as though she were choking as she took in the countless injuries occupying the body of the girl she viewed as a daughter. "Daisy."

May couldn't hear Jemma anymore, wasn't even aware of the frenzied movement of the team around her; all she could see was Daisy.

Her skin was mottled with bruises and cuts, lip split, a gash on her temple and cheek. Blood ran down the side of her face from a larger cut near her hairline and something like a chemical burn hugged the left side of her face.

Jemma was rolling up the girl's tunic, displaying an abdomen saturated in blood, dried and fresh, originating from a stab wound. She motioned Yo-Yo to put pressure on the bleeding before moving to examine the ugly twisted wound on Daisy's neck. She checked again for a pulse.

"She's undergoing cardiac arrest. Fitz, please tell me there's a defibrillator on this ship." Jemma's voice was tight with panic.

Enoch moved to procure the needed instrument.

"Daisy," May breathed, moving toward the girl's head, stroking her dark, blood soaked hair with a trembling hand. "If you can hear me, please come back to us. Come back to me. Please." She kissed Daisy's forehead before moving back to let Jemma use the defibrillator.

"Clear!"

Daisy's body jolted and somehow May found Coulson's hand, squeezing it as tightly as she could.

 _"Analyzing,"_ the machine hummed.

"Clear!"

Another jolt.

May felt a tear escape down her cheek.

 _Please Daisy. Please. I can't lose you._

 _"Analyzing."_

 _Please._

"Clear!"

 _Please._

* * *

(line)

"I've missed you."

Daisy blinked slowly before quickly sitting up.

"Lincoln?"

He smiled at her, caressing her cheek.

"Oh my god!" Daisy wrapped her arms around him, rocking back and forth. "I've missed you so much. So so much."

Lincoln kissed her cheek.

"Wait…" Daisy pulled back slightly, her mind starting to catch up with her. Confusion filled her as she looked around at the empty room they were in. "This isn't real."

Lincoln smiled sadly, grabbing her hands. "It isn't clear yet where you will be."

Daisy stared at him, memories pressing against the back of her mind.

She looked down at her body but found no sign of the brutal treatment at the training center.

"Am I dying?"

"Unclear," Lincoln squeezed her hand. "It might be up to you."

"Up to me?" Daisy turned away, suddenly uncertain. "Did my team reach me? I only remember Yo-Yo being there."

"I don't know," Lincoln shook his head. "I only know what you know."

Daisy ran a hand through her hair, staring into the nothingness of her surroundings. If Yo-Yo didn't succeed in getting her out, she had no desire to leave this peaceful place.

"I need to know." Frustrated she turned to Lincoln who only shrugged helplessly.

"I'm sorry, Daisy."

Daisy began to pace.

"I… I can't do it anymore. I don't have anything left," she turned to Lincoln. "You… you're here, so this isn't real. But it's better than what is happening out there."

"It's your decision," Lincoln wrapped his arms around her and she closed her eyes for a moment, taking comfort in his presence. "But you know I have to remind you that your team would never give up on." His eyes found hers.

 _"No matter what happens, I will find you. Coulson and I will find you and we will bring you home."_ May's voice was a soft whisper in her mind.

"You're right. They would never give up on me. So I can't give up on them either," Daisy said slowly.

 _"If you can hear this, please come back to us. To me."_

Suddenly the room shook beneath them.

"Someone is trying to bring you back," Lincoln grabbed Daisy's hand. "Have you made your choice?"

"I don't know." Daisy raised a hand to touch his face. "I'm scared. I want to be here with you."

"I'm always with you," Lincoln flashed her one of his bright smiles. "In your heart."

"That is so freaking cliché," Daisy groaned.

"Hey, it's your mind," Lincoln protested.

The room jolted again.

"I have to go," Daisy murmured.

"I know."

She wrapped entwined her fingers in his hair and kissed him softly for a moment before stepping back.

 _"If you can hear this, please come back to us. To me."_

The room jolted a third time and Skye took a deep breath, ready to return to her family.

Darkness roared to meet her and she caught one last glimpse of Lincoln before it carried her away.

* * *

(line)

Biting her lip so hard it bled, May watched as Daisy remained deathly still. A single tear ran down her cheek.

 _Please Daisy. Please._

"Clear!"

A jolt.

Silence.

 _Please._

"We've got her back!"

* * *

 ** _We are very near the end!_**

 ** _I'll try not to leave you hanging too long._**

 ** _No question of the day, computer is about to die!_**

 ** _~silverlining_**


	6. Feel Me Heal

_**Ahhh I am so sorry for the late update! Many things have been afoot. Let's just say I'm in finals season at the same time as beginning to transition into a new job. The combination is kind of killer at the moment.**_

 _ **But let's not dwell on that! Instead, I present to you the (potential) last chapter of this fic!**_

 _ **I am open to doing another chapter or two if people want to see something in particular happen, so leave that review and let me know!**_

 _ **Disclaimer: I do not own Agents of Shield.**_

* * *

Daisy did not wake up when they re-infiltrated the Lighthouse. She did not wake up when Flint led the humans to freedom, nor when Mack and Jemma killed Kasius. She did not wake up when they travelled back in time and space. Once back in the proper time, she still did not wake up.

An infection ravaged her weakened systems and she nearly died again, pulling through just barely.

The team established new routines surrounding the hospital bed, visiting individually throughout the day when they had time, then gathering as a family together around Daisy in the evening to talk and just be together.

Throughout the chaos, May got into the habit of talking to Daisy when she had a rare moment alone with the girl.

She told her about Bahrain, about how she had always wanted a daughter, about her own childhood, everything.

It was when May felt that she had finally run out of things to talk about that Daisy had mercy on her and woke up.

At first May didn't even realize. Then Daisy's hand moved slightly in her own and May froze, unsure if she had imagined it.

"Daisy?"

Two brown eyes slowly blinked open.

"Hey," Daisy rasped and it was the most beautiful sound May had ever heard. "You found me."

May clung to her hand.

"I always will find you."

Daisy smiled, murmuring something as her eyes drooped closed again.

"What?" May leaned forward, trying to catch what the agent had said.

Daisy repeated it again sleepily.

 _"Love you, Mom."_

* * *

(line)

"Daisy, don't even try it," Jemma rolled her eyes, turning around to look at her friend who was trying to sneak out of the bed.

"How did you even see me?" Daisy complained, pouting as she laid back down.

"Eyes in the back of my head," Jemma smirked.

"Really," Daisy folded her arms.

"You're not as sneaky as you think you are," Jemma shook her head, checking Daisy's vitals.

"You know I have a doctor here, right? Also, I will have you know that I am a secret agent," Daisy raised her eyebrows.

"I actually already know that because I am too," Jemma informed her. "And I don't care if you have a doctor here, I still get to assess you. Two heads are better than one. Let me check your neck."

Daisy pulled her hair to the side to reveal the wound.

"You're paranoid. Let the poor doctor do her thing."

"A second opinion never hurt anyone." Jemma examined the wound. "It looks like it's healing nicely. How is it feeling?" Jemma asked, examining it.

"Can't even feel it," Daisy shrugged.

Jemma glanced at her, slightly concerned. "You keep saying that."

Daisy didn't quite meet her gaze. "It's true."

Jemma stopped what she was doing.

"Daisy, a small electronic _blew up_ in your neck, almost killing you and requiring extensive surgery to remove all the bits. Don't tell me that doesn't hurt."

Daisy wouldn't look at her.

"It doesn't."

"Daisy." Jemma slowly sat down in a chair next to her friend. "Do you think maybe… maybe it's time to talk about what happened?"

Daisy stared up intently, suddenly fascinated with the ceiling tiles.

"Daisy?"

"No."

Jemma bit her lip, overwhelmed with a mixture of emotions. Fear, sorrow, worry, anger…

"I should have been there." Jemma blinked hard. "Maybe if I were there…"

"Don't ever say that." Daisy's jaw clenched. "Please. Don't." Something in the girl's voice broke. "Don't ever ever _ever_ say you should have been there." The dark haired agent turned slightly, tears shining in her eyes, her voice pleading. "The only good in the situation was that none of you were there."

"Yo-Yo brought you to us, I thought you were dead," Jemma said softly. "And then, briefly, you were. Literally, your hair was wet with blood. It looked like your neck had been slit with the blood all over it…"

"Stop." Daisy grabbed Jemma's hand. "I'm fine."

"I thought you were going to die," Jemma couldn't stop the sob that shook her body. "I thought you had been tortured to death and there was nothing I could do to stop it, that I would have to live with the knowledge that my best friend had gone through that and I had been unable to…"  
"Jemma, please," Daisy was crying silently. "Please. I'm fine."

"But you're not. I know you aren't. Nobody goes sustains the injuries we saw and is just fine. Please. Let us in," Jemma begged.

"Not yet," Daisy whispered. "I… I can't. Not right now. Not yet."

Jemma looked at her friend, chest aching at how broken the strong woman looked.

"When you're ready," she said quietly. "When you're ready, we'll be there, okay?"

"Okay," Daisy gave her a small smile.

"Okay."

A pause.

"Jemma?"

"Yes?" Jemma turned to her friend.  
"Having you here helps."

Jemma smiled and squeezed Daisy's hand. "Good, because I'm not going anywhere."

* * *

"What the hell are you doing, Daisy?"  
Daisy turned quickly to find May in the doorway.

"Is everyone here out to get me?" Daisy groaned, moving away from the window she had hauled herself out of bed to look out of. She just wanted a view of something other than the ceiling for once.

"Daisy." May's eyes widened with panic. The senior agent dropped her things and pressed the call button near the door before quickly moving towards Daisy. "Get back on the bed. Now."

"What?" Daisy furrowed her brow, confused by the severity of May's reaction. "I just wanted to…"

"Now," May ground out, almost pushing her back onto bed. "Stay down."

"What the hell…"

Suddenly Daisy noticed that her white hospital gown was drenched with blood.

"Holy…" her eyes widened.

A nurse rushed into the room, flitting around her.

"She tore her stitches again," he quickly announced, putting pressure on the wound. A doctor quickly appeared, examining the situation. "We're going to have to redo about half of them," she decided. "I think we can salvage the lower part. We might need a small blood transfusion, just to be safe."

"Damn it," Daisy muttered.

May glared at her. "Damn it. That's all you have to say?" The older agent's eyes flashed with anger. "This is the third time."

"It doesn't hurt," Daisy murmured. "I didn't realize…"

"I don't know what is going on, but it needs to stop." May clenched her jaw. Daisy shrunk back slightly at the intensity of the agent's gaze.

"May, I…"

"What's happening?" Coulson ran into the room. "I heard the distress button was hit…" he trailed off, taking in the scene.

"She tore her stitches getting up. Again." May's voice was low, furious. "She was just standing there by the window while she was bleeding out, said she couldn't feel a damn thing."

"I didn't…" Daisy looked between the two agents. "I didn't mean to…"

"May, why don't you get some air," Coulson suggested quietly. For a moment May just glared at him. Then she turned and stalked out of the room.

"Coulson, I didn't…" Daisy bit her lip, trying to stop the tears from overflowing.

"It's okay, I know you didn't mean to," Phil grasped her hand, softly caressing it. "Does she need to go into surgery?" he turned to the doctor.

"We should be able to do it here," the doctor said briskly, pulling on a fresh pair of gloves.

"Can I stay?"

"Please do. We're just going to do local anesthesia so if you could keep her from any large movements, that would be helpful."

Coulson pulled up a chair. "Get into a comfy position and don't move," he instructed.

Daisy turned her head slightly to look at him, taking his offered hand.

"May's angry."

"May's scared, sweetheart," Coulson smiled softly. "She's not angry at you."

Daisy closed her eyes briefly. "It doesn't seem that way."

"I know May. She's scared. You scared her. But it's okay."

Daisy pondered that for a moment, wondering what it meant that she had the power to scare Melinda May

"I didn't mean to, I'm sorry," she said finally, feeling like a small child again. "I just…"

Coulson shook his head, cutting her off. "Don't apologize, it's not your fault sweetheart."

 _Sweetheart._

The tears suddenly came.

"I was scared."

Coulson squeezed her hand but didn't say anything, his kind blue eyes fixed on her.

"They made me kill other fighters."

She didn't know where the words were coming from or why they were emerging now but they just spilled from her lips.

"I'm sorry." Coulson's voice was soft.

"When I didn't, they did worse things to them. I didn't have a choice. But I did."

"It's not your fault, Daisy. You aren't responsible for those deaths. What happened there was sick beyond belief; they used you. It wasn't you."

His words were so certain that Daisy found herself clinging to them like a buoy in an ocean of confusion.

"The thing in my neck, it wasn't just an inhibitor. It… it would emit… something, I don't know, but it hurt like nothing I've every experienced. Compared to it…" Daisy squeezed her eyes closed. "Compared to it, I don't feel anything. That's what they wanted. And it worked."

 _Don't expect me to be fixed; can't you see I'm broken?_

"Daisy." Coulson's voice brought her back. "It'll take time but you will be okay. You will feel again. I promise."

"How do you know?" She searched his face desperately, wanting so badly to find some answer there.

"Tahiti was _not_ a wonderful place." Coulson gave her a small smile. "The things that happened in the wake of that journey, the probing into my mind that the machines did…" His grip on her hand tightened slightly. "It took awhile. But you will find yourself. And we are all here for you."

"All set," the doctor interrupted them. "Now you, young lady, are in danger of me tying you down myself. Can I have your word that you won't get up until we decide it's safe for you to do so?"

Daisy nodded. "Yeah. I won't do it again."  
"Good. I have to check in on another patient but I'll be back later to make sure everything is looking okay."

"Thanks doc."

"That poor woman," Coulson shook his head, watching the doctor leave the room.

"Come on. I'm not _that_ bad," Daisy grinned.

Coulson just raised an eyebrow.

A small movement caught Daisy's eye and she looked up to find May standing silently in the doorway.

Coulson followed her gaze.

"I'm going to get some of the awful hospital coffee," he announced, pausing to kiss Daisy on the forehead. "I love you, kiddo."

"Love you too," Daisy smiled at him.

For a moment after Coulson left, May just stood in the doorway, expression unreadable.

Daisy bit her lip and fidgeted with the bed sheet.

"I'm sorry." Daisy offered the word hesitantly, glancing to see how the older agent would respond.

Slowly, May stepped in the room and closed the door carefully behind her.

"Don't apologize." Her voice was even. She took the chair Coulson had been sitting in, her dark eyes flitting to the window for a moment.

"It was dumb, I wasn't thinking…" Daisy said hurriedly.

"Don't." May shook her head and suddenly Daisy saw the tear trailing down the agent's face. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have reacted like that."

"May…" Daisy slowly reached out to take her mentor's hand. "May, it's okay…"

"I can't lose you."

Daisy froze.

"I can't lose you," May shook her head. "I just can't."

"I can't lose you either," Daisy gripped her hand tightly.

 _Oh god now she was crying too._

"I was so scared when the team brought you back to the ship. You weren't responding; I watched as they tried to restart your heart. And in that moment, I realized I couldn't lose you… I realized that… that I'm not strong enough." May paused. "But you – Daisy, you are strong. You came back to us." May took a deep breath. "If you need a week, a month, a year, I don't care. Take it. Take all the time you need." May clung to her hand. "If you can't fight for your health right now, that's okay. But I'm going to fight for it and for you. Every step of the way." May smiled even as a tear trailed down her face. "I love you so so much." May kissed Daisy's hand. "So much."

Daisy reached for May, who automatically moved closer to embrace her. She buried her face in May's shoulder the best she could from her position and for a moment they stayed like that, Daisy just letting May hold her.

"Don't ever scare me like that again, got it?" May stroked her hair gently.

Daisy smiled through her tears at the return of May's characteristic no-nonsense tone.

"Got it."

"Good."

A pause.

"May?"

"Yes?"

"I love you too."

As tiredness swept over Daisy, she let herself relax in the bed, holding May's hand. Coulson came back and sat with them, his casual conversation dulling into a soothing background noise as Daisy's eyes drifted shut. She was faintly aware that May was rubbing soft circles on the back of her hand as Coulson's deep voice settled on the room like a soft blanket.

Slowly, Daisy became aware of the sensation of a dull ache in her side, where the stab wound was.

 _It hurt._

She didn't push away the feeling but rather was overwhelmed by a deep sense of relief.

It felt like healing.

* * *

 _ **Unless I hear otherwise from readers who would like to see a particular scene in this story arc (which I am open to), this is the last chapter!**_

 _ **Thanks for the amazing support, reads, reviews, follows and faves, and for coming alongside me on this journey! It is always a please and an honor.**_

 _ **Until next time!**_

 _ **~silverlining**_


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